As it turns out—
Uchiha Madara was not a very moral person.
His plan to find a successor was swiftly put into motion. Black Zetsu and the White Zetsu army worked together to locate a descendant of the Uzumaki bloodline in the Land of Rain. They implanted Madara's Rinnegan into the eyes of a boy named Nagato.
Of course—
Madara wasn't the only one exploiting the Uzumaki Clan.
Konoha, too, had found an Uzumaki girl named Kushina.
With the previous Nine-Tails Jinchūriki, Uzumaki Mito, reaching the end of her life, Konoha needed a new host to seal Kurama within.
"So Konoha wants to use my power again, huh?"
Kurama lay sprawled within the seal, its chakra fluctuating violently.
"You used Emiya Shigen until he was of no more use to you… And now you want to use me again?"
"I'm sorry… Kurama."
Uzumaki Mito's face was filled with guilt.
Both Emiya Shigen and Kurama had been manipulated by Konoha, and she was deeply ashamed of how the village had broken its promises.
"Konoha won't exploit your power…"
Mito tried to say the words, but they felt hollow even to her own ears.
Because—
They were a blatant lie.
Given Konoha's track record, no one would believe such claims—especially not Kurama, who had lived for a thousand years.
"Hmph."
"Don't call my name!"
"Such hypocrites, Mito…"
"You even used Emiya Shigen… And you think I'd believe your words?"
"I heard your Uzumaki Clan is on the brink of extinction, isn't it? That's the price for trusting Konoha!"
"…"
Mito could not feel more remorseful.
Uzushio had fallen.
The Uzumaki Clan was scattered, searching for new homes.
Every major village in the shinobi world, desperate for the Uzumaki's sealing techniques, had been targeting their homeland for years. Konoha had never been able to offer them real help.
As the Second Tsuchikage had once predicted—
Being Konoha's ally meant only helping Konoha. When trouble came, Konoha would never return the favor.
Recently—
Uzushio had reached out to Konoha with an important matter.
Years ago, during Emiya Shigen's travels, he visited Uzushio and suggested that the Uzumaki relocate to the Land of Grass. He believed their immense strength should be put to better use, and moving closer to smaller villages would create balance.
This way—
The Uzumaki could remain close to Konoha, their traditional ally.
But at the time—
The Uzumaki had refused to leave their homeland.
They feared that living in the Land of Grass would lead to conflicts with Konoha. After all, the Uzumaki had originally moved far from the mainland to avoid clashes with their powerful distant relatives, the Senju.
Now—
Uzushio had perished.
But there was one silver lining—
As Uzushio fell, and its people became refugees, someone had stepped up to help them.
A certain rogue ninja named Kakuzu had found some wandering Uzumaki survivors and believed they could be useful.
"When I met Emiya Shigen during my travels, he told me that the Uzumaki were an honest people—people worth entrusting one's life to. Maybe you can help me manage the orphanages I sponsor?"
In the past—
Kakuzu had never interacted with Uzushio.
As a rogue ninja from Takigakure, he assumed the prideful Uzumaki wouldn't associate with him. He had dismissed Emiya Shigen's words.
But now, with the Uzumaki displaced and homeless, Kakuzu decided to reach out.
Soon, he realized the meaning behind Emiya Shigen's words—
The Uzumaki weren't just honest. They were almost naïve. These red-haired fools actually took their responsibilities seriously!
Luckily—
That was exactly what Kakuzu needed.
Because, frankly, he had been struggling.
For years, Kakuzu had tried to follow Emiya Shigen's advice and help those in need. But as a ninja who only knew how to kill for money, he had no time to properly oversee his orphanages. As a result, corruption was rampant.
People were stealing from him.
Stealing from Kakuzu.
From his hard-earned, blood-soaked money!
These orphanage directors—who did they think they were?!
Did they think making money was easy?!
As a man who had single-handedly slaughtered the leadership of Takigakure, Kakuzu had no moral qualms about killing people.
Whenever he found a corrupt director, he simply cut them down on the spot and moved on to the next one.
But things only got worse.
The shinobi world was a mess.
Kakuzu considered himself a villain, but he was starting to wonder if there was a single decent person left in this world.
How dare these orphanage directors embezzle from an S-rank rogue ninja?!
Were they trying to scam an old man?!
Of course—
Kakuzu didn't realize the real reason.
It was because of his longevity.
These people assumed that, given his status as a wanted criminal, Kakuzu had to be ancient by now. They figured he wouldn't be around much longer, so they stole while they could.
Unfortunately for them—
Kakuzu wasn't aging anytime soon.
So he kept killing corrupt officials.
But finally—
It seemed the world wasn't entirely filled with scumbags.
If Emiya Shigen trusted the Uzumaki, maybe they really were different.
After all, Shigen once told him that chakra influenced people's hearts.
And sure enough, these Uzumaki genuinely cared for the orphans.
For the first time in years, Kakuzu felt at peace.
As for the Uzumaki refugees—
They hesitantly accepted his help.
With Kakuzu's support, they found stability and gradually forgot the pain of losing their homeland. They also started reaching out to other lost clan members.
"We have a relative named Fusō who married into the Land of Rain. If she's still alive, we should send word to her."
"That works out. I'm heading to the Land of Rain anyway."
"The people there are suffering terribly. The war has made food scarce…"
Kakuzu placed a thick stack of money on the table.
"This is for the orphanages.
"I hope you live up to what Emiya Shigen said about you."
"Yes… but where did this money come from?"
"Killing. The bounty exchange office pays for ninja corpses."
Kakuzu spoke matter-of-factly.
"I just took out a jōnin from Iwagakure. His corpse was worth a million ryō."
His trip to the Land of Rain wasn't just to help people—he was hunting for more high-value targets. Assassination paid better than any other mission.
"I'll look for your relative, Fusō."
Kakuzu eyed the Uzumaki women before adding—
"If you come across any other Uzumaki survivors, send them to me.
"I have a few orphanages that need new directors… since the last ones stole from me and had to be dealt with."
"…Huh?"
The red-haired women stared at him in horror.
It seemed fate had taken pity on the Uzumaki.
Perhaps as compensation for their near-extinction, destiny had entangled their lineage with another.
One Uzumaki girl was learning to become a Jinchūriki in Konoha.
Another Uzumaki orphan had awakened the Rinnegan.
And as the great nations clashed, the small countries suffered.
The Second Shinobi World War had begun.
And there was no Emiya Shigen to stop it this time.
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Powerstones?
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